Gun Dog Forum

I took my dog duck hunting for the first time a couple weeks ago, and I kept he duck and froze it for later use. I tried to get him to retrieve it for me, he did after a while but he wouldnt pick it up without chewing it. And he wouldn't hold it very well. I'm just wondering if anyone can help. He's a black lab 1.5 years old

Some dogs don't like frozen ducks. had the same problem with mine she was a powerfull retiever too. I now take them out of the freezer the day before. FF will fix as well

Harder than heck for a dog to pick up a frozen duck, especially a large one like a mallard. Don't like them, never did use them. I think they can cause more problems than they cure.

Let it thaw out out mostly. It is hard for a dog to pick up something like that because they can't get a good grip on it.

On a side note one other thing to add would be force fetch. You may not want to do it but I am a firm believer in with retrievers. Not only will it get a nice pretty delivery to hand it also teaches them how to deal with pressure when you start teaching the more advanced stuff. I think it gives them alot of confidence.